Ok Google, did you really do it first?

The Google Pixel 7 series just launched, bringing along with it the all-new Google Tensor G2 SoC, better cameras, and a more refined design. At the same time, the company also introduced new software features and improved upon the ones that are already there. While Google often does fantastic work with its smartphones, it feels hard to shake the feeling that the company feels that it’s a lot more influential than it actually is.

Let’s be clear here: obviously, Google makes Android. I’m not discrediting the company for its work on the world’s largest mobile operating system. Having said that, AOSP at this stage is a combination of the work of a lot of OEMs that aren’t just Google, and the team that manages AOSP within Google is not the team that makes Pixel. In fact, there are a ton of Pixel features that simply aren’t in AOSP, and even more of them made it to the list with the Pixel 7 series.

During the company’s launch event, Brian Rakowski, Vice President of Product Management at Google, loved to take potshots at other companies (namely Apple) while also reminding them that it was an innovator. While Google has done some great things for the Android ecosystem, it seems that it definitely overvalues those contributions.

Google claims that it made the Always on Display and Night mode photography

The first claim that surprised me was quite early on in the keynote. Rakowski went on to say that the Pixel has always been a leader in smartphone innovation, and said that the company always takes it as a compliment when others go on to follow their lead. He then used always on display, a feature that debuted with the Pixel 2, as an example of a feature that others followed Google’s lead on.

There are several things wrong with this claim, the first of which being that the first smartphone to have an always-on display wasn’t even an Android phone… it was the Nokia 6303, way back in 2008! Even in the Android world, Samsung did it first with the Samsung Galaxy S7. Google was actually quite late to the party, and it’s strange to hear that Google believes it pioneered the always-on display.

Following on from that, it seems that the company also believes that it was the first to increase the exposure time in order to improve photography in low light with the Pixel 3. This also isn’t true, as Huawei did it beforehand with the Huawei P20 Pro.

Rakowski went on to say that “It’s an amazing track record of pioneering features that were first on Pixel” — the problem is that these features weren’t first on Pixel at all.

Calling out Apple for not supporting RCS is a bit of a joke at this point

Later on, Rakowski took a specific shot at Apple, stating that “RCS is the modern industry standard for messaging, and it’s already been adopted by most of the industry”. However, anyone even living in the U.S. who uses RCS will tell you that the service, while pretty much better than SMS, still has its own problems. While bringing RCS to iPhone would absolutely expand user options, it’s not as if it’s a perfect standard either, nor would I call it the “modern industry standard for messaging”.

The problem appears to be that like with the other innovations Google claims to have made, it thinks that RCS is the next big thing. It wants to be a pioneer, and if RCS sees widespread adoption, then it will get that credibility of being one. Continuously calling out Apple isn’t going to get it anywhere, and it just looks a bit sad at this point.

For those unfamiliar with RCS (or Rich Communication Services) — think of it as SMS 2.0. The standard allows two compatible phones to share high-quality media through an internet connection. So, unlike SMS, you get to text others by merely having a Wi-Fi connection. It also supports typing indicators, read receipts, and other rich features. It’s great as a concept, but you’d get better functionality out of other IM apps as long as the people around you are also on it.

Google is an innovator, it doesn’t need to take credit for everything

Google Pixel 7 Pro is Hazel color and Google Pixel 7 in Lemongrass color

The thing is that Google is absolutely an innovator, but it doesn’t need to take credit for things that it hasn’t done. It didn’t create the always-on display, it didn’t pioneer nighttime photography, and RCS adoption has been spotty at best. The reason it lays claim to these creations is that these improvements can be seen as contributions to the Android smartphone ecosystem in general.

Where Google really innovates is in the software that comes on its own smartphones, and those aren’t a part of AOSP. Features like Now Playing, Magic Eraser, and even the usage of its own chipset in the form of Google Tensor G2 is innovation in itself. The posturing and grandstanding of claiming that it inspired others in the space with features it didn’t even create isn’t needed, and to anyone who knows the history of those features, comes across as a bit desperate.

Google has been doing just fine innovating by itself, and it doesn’t need to claim credit for features it didn’t make. Now Playing is one of my favorite features in a smartphone ever, and there are plenty of other fantastic features that did pioneer on Google smartphones. Those are the features that people know and love and are features that Google actually created.